


Unreal Reality

by toastydoodlez



Category: Durarara!!
Genre: Drama, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-10-20
Updated: 2014-10-20
Packaged: 2018-02-21 23:46:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2486720
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/toastydoodlez/pseuds/toastydoodlez
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Shizuo wakes to find he’s been in a coma for the past year. Turns out everything that’s happen has been a figment of his unconscious mind. Including his monstrous strength. With lingering resentment towards the man who was apparently his best friend, and no more strength to defend himself with, how will Shizuo manage to adjust to “normal” life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Coma?

"IIIIZAAAYAAAA!" Shizuo bellowed as he gave chase to the Informant. "I told you to stay out of Ikebukuro!"

Izaya simply smirked back at him as he turned the corner, leading the other into the park. Shizuo chased after him in the streets and behind alleys. Through the park and construction sites, throwing whatever random objects he got his hands on. Through twists and turns all through out Ikebukuro, he relentlessly followed him. I'm gonna catch that damn flea if it's the last thing I do, he thought. I'll catch his skinny ass for sure this time!

More turns and suddenly Izaya found himself at a dead end. He turned quickly only to find Shizuo right behind him. Shizuo grinned widely, "I finally got you! You're dead Izaya!"

Izaya didn't flinch or look scared, or even a little worried. In fact he looked quite smug. And this pissed Shizuo off even more than he had been already. "What are you smiling about? You're about to die."

Izaya closed his eyes and calmly replied, "No, Shizu-chan. You see…the one whose about to die is you. You fell right into my trap."

And with that he produced one of his knifes and proceeded to throw one high into the air above Shizuo. Shizuo looked up only to see many heavy objects hurdling towards him. Shit! Was all he had time to think before the objects collided with him. All the was left was darkness.

* * *

 

_*beep*…*beep*…*beep*…_

"He's been gone for a long time…how much longer do you think he'll be out?" said a voice slightly muffled.

"Who knows," said another, slightly clearer. "Some people never wake up. All we can do is hope for the best."

 _What are they talking about?_  thought Shizuo.  _Who's gone?_

Shizuo felt groggy, he didn't even want to open his eyes. He also felt something he never felt before. Weak. Weakness was foreign to him, being the strongest person he ever met for as long as he could remember. Well, there were a few who could keep up with him, but still.

_*beep*…*beep*…*beep*…_

_What is that annoying beeping noise?_  he thought irritated. Then he realized it was a heart rate monitor. Why is one of those here? What happened? He couldn't remember anything that could had happened.

The two voices from before continued talking. They sounded slightly familiar, but in his current state, couldn't place them.

Reluctantly, he slowly opened his eyes, blinking as they adjusted to the light. The room he was in was dim, but he recognized it as a hospital room, having being in them many times as a child. Looking around he found the two people talking standing to the right of the bed he was laying in. The one closest to him was wearing a white doctors lab coat. He recognized him right away. It was Shinra, the weirdo doctor he was somehow friends with. Shizuo's eyes hadn't fully adjust to the light and could make out the other figure yet.

He noticed there was something on his face. Glancing down he saw it was a breathing mask.  _The hell happen that I would need this?_  He wondered. He went to move his arm so he could take the thing off, but found his arm to be sore. Really sore. So he moved his arm slowly. Once he reached the mask he pulled it down and away from his face, and said, "What's going on?" Or rather, he would had said that, but all that came out was a horse whisper. He frowned and tried clearing his throat, the sound if which grabbed his companions attention.

Shinra, who was in the middle of a sentence, turned around and looked at Shizuo in disbelief. "Oh my goodness, you're awake! This is great news," he said with a smile. "I had honestly began to lose hope, but here you are." He bent down closer to Shizuo, "How are you feeling?"

"Like crap," Shizuo tried to say, but again his voice was horse.

"I see you've lost your voice. Well, that's no good, though expected. You've been out for a long time." He turned to the other guest, "Could you go fetch some water please?" The other guest simply nodded and left.

Shinra turned back to Shizuo. "You know, you really had us all worried. After your accident, things got really quiet….ah, here's your water!" Company number two had returned. Shinra turned once again to take the water from him, and then returned to Shizuo. He put his free hand behind his head and lifted him slightly and helped him to drink slowly. The water was rough going down but it helped.

When they were done Shinra put down the cup and Shizuo cleared his throat again. "So, lets try this again." said Shinra. "How are you feeling?"

"Like crap," Shizuo finally managed to say.

Shinra laughed at this, "Yes, I suppose you would. You HAVE been in a coma for about a year now."

"WHAT!?" yelled Shizuo in shock making them jump. "What do you mean for a year? A coma? No way!"

"It's true," said Shinra matter of factly. "Everyone thought you were a goner. You did get hit pretty hard by that truck."

"…Truck?" Shizuo brain took a moment to process this. "I was hit by a truck and put into a coma for a year?….by a truck?" Shizuo couldn't believe what he was hearing. He's been hit by trucks at least twice and it never knocked him out. Only disoriented him for a moment. "You're shitting me, right?"

"Nope, I kid you not!" Shinra had no idea why he didn't believe him. "You're just lucky Izaya was there, since on one else was around, and the driver pulled a hit and run."

Shizuo tried sitting up. "Uh, huh…wait! Izaya!? Why was he there?"

Shinra pushed him back down. "I think he said he was looking for you. Doesn't matter though. You need to rest."

"Why would he call for help for me?" He struggled against Shinra. But couldn't sit up. How weird.

"Why wouldn't he?" asked Shinra confused and a little worried.

Shizuo looked at him like he was crazy, "This is Izaya were talking about. He'd never do anything like that! He hates me just as I hate him!" Shinra was shocked, and was about to speak when the other guest decided to speak up.

"You know I'm standing right here?" It was Izaya. "And I'm quite shock at what I'm hearing from you." He moved closer. He had a look of both shock and disgust. Expressions Shizuo had never seen on him before. "I honestly had no idea you felt that way…"

"Don't give me that shit, you damn flea! And what the hell are you doing here?"

Shinra decided to step in, "Now now Shizuo, don't be like that. It wasn't his fault you got hit. Besides, he's your friend. I don't know why you think he hates you."

"The impact must have scrambled the idiots brain…," Izaya mumbled.

"Watch you you're calling an idiot!" They glared at each other for seemed to be ages. Shinra sighed, wondering what he was going to do about these two.

The longer Shizuo glared at Izaya, the more he noticed something. Izaya's eyes looked all red and puffy. Had he been crying? He realized that was another thing he never saw Izaya do. Cry. The thought made Shizuo's expression soften and forget his anger. Maybe this was some weird dream, or maybe…..was it possible that his hatred for Izaya and everything crazy that happened, just a coma induced dream? He felt weak and sore, like a normal person…maybe this was real life. But everything else felt so real. Shizuo rubbed his face, "I just don't get it…"


	2. Familiar Strangers

Shizuo groaned and shifted in the bed. "Ugh, this doesn't make any freakin sense…" He laid there and stared at the ceiling, trying to figure things out. Lifting his head slightly, he looked over at Shinra. "So…I've been a vegetable for about a year…and the Flea…I mean, Izaya…is my…friend?" The disbelief in his voice was quite obvious. The idea that Izaya was his friend was pretty laughable. But then again, all he could remember was the asshole from his dream. Perhaps this Izaya was different.

"Hm, well, yes." Shinra was worried about his friends mental condition. "You really don't remember anything?"

Shizuo shook his head then laid it back down. "No…or rather, I remember things, but how much of it is real and how much is from the dream…"

Shinra sighed. "That isn't good…hmm…I think…that ill go ahead and give you a physical. But it'll be while before you can leave, you've been out for over a year, remember? After you're released though, I can take you to stay with me and Celty until you get your reality back to normal, however long that takes…" Shizuo perked up at Celty's name. That's right…in my dream, Celty was the headless black rider…things like that don't exactly exist right? So she'll be human…with a head…just like I'm a normal weak human. Shizuo grinned a little at this thought. Normal…finally…

"…Shizuo! Are you listening?" Shinra said growing more worried. Shizuo snapped out of his thoughts. He hadn't realized he had spaced out. "Yeah…sorry…" He tried sitting up again, body still quite sore but not as bad as when he first woke up. This time Shinra didn't stop him.

He glanced in Izaya's direction and got a better look at him. He was standing next to Shinra with arms crossed, dressed in a black suit, glaring at Shizuo. Everything about Izaya just felt off. The way he dressed, the lack of flea stink around him, that Shinra claimed the two of them were friends. Though if all of this is real, he'd probably prefer this. He'd just have to get use to it…again. He didn't know if he could.

"Look, Izaya…" Shizuo started to say but Izaya looked at his watch and interrupted him, "I don't have time to stick around and chat. Not like you want me here anyways. See you, Shinra." And with that he turned and left. Both Shizuo and Shinra stared at the door he left through, Shizuo's mouth agape.

"That ass!" He glared at Shinra. "We're suppose to be friends? Bullshit!"

"He's just upset," said Shinra with a sigh. "The two of you used to get along great. If you had anyone you'd call your best friend, it'd be him."

Shizuo snorted, "Yeah right…"

"Don't be like that." Shinra walked over to the end of the bed and grabbed a clipboard that was hanging on it. "Besides, he's really busy with his work lately. He comes around whenever he has free time to see you."

"He does?" Great, now he felt guilty. Shizuo shifted uneasily in the bed.

"Mmhm." Shinra looked over the clipboard. "He cares about you despite whatever you got going on in your head. So then..." He looked up at him. "Why don't you tell me exactly what that is?"

Shizuo told him every thing he could remember. Everything from his strength to why he hated Izaya so much to what everyone else in his head was like.

"I see." Shinra was busy writing everything down on the clipboard. "To be fair, that does seem like a good reason to hate him. But the Izaya here is the real one, and he's not like that. Perhaps we should get you into some therapy sessions to get that fixed. Physical therapy is already needed, so that will certainly be scheduled."

"What? What for? How long am I gonna be stuck in here?" Shizuo demanded to know.

"You have been in here in a  _coma_  for nearly a  _year_ , remember?" Shinra reminded the blond. "You've been sustained by machines till now, you're still on an IV, and you've lost weight. Plus, a shave might do you some good."

Shizuo frowned and touched his face. It was rather fuzzy. "Fine..."

"That's a good man. Now." He stood up from the chair he had been sitting on. "Are you hungry? Would you like me to send a nurse to get you some food? It won't be much, as you're stomach needs to adjust to having real food again, but I know I'd be starving myself. Just make sure you eat slowly."

"Sure..."

"Great, now I gotta go see to my other patients. I'll be back to check up on you though, and you can press that red button if you need anything, and a nurse will be in to help. Get some rest after you eat, alright?" And with that, he smiled and left.

Shizuo settled back into the bed and sighed. He was going to be bored to death laying here. As he waited for the nurse, he stared up into the ceiling and daydreamed.

"...Jima-san? Heiwajima-san?"

Shizuo blinked and looked over to see the nurse who bowed lightly when she got his attention. "I brought you the snack Doctor Kishitani-san asked for." She showed him the pudding in her hand.

Shizuo blinked twice before reaching out for it. Pudding was his favorite food. This one wasn't his favorite flavor, but it was pudding. "Hm, thanks," he said to the nurse before she left.

He opened the container and started eating. And as soon as it hit his tongue, only then did he realize just how hungry he was. He scarfed it down.  _Oh, delicious pudding, how my body missed you._

He felt rather content after that, and returned to day dreaming. That is until he began felling ill. His stomach grumble unpleasantly, and he felt like he was about to barf.

He groaned, before he started moving his sore body. Slowly he moved his legs over to the side of the bed, and started pushing himself up. It was harder than he expected, and his stomach was complaining more. He tried standing, but his legs gave out and he fell to the floor and almost threw up right there.

"Ugh..." Slowly, he tried again. His legs wobbled, but he managed to stand. He then looked around the room. Was their an attached bathroom? He hadn't noticed before, but luckily there was. He started towards it but felt something tug on his hand. It was the IV.  _Dammit..._  He went back to it and grabbed the IV bag, and tried again. He covered his mouth with his other hand, feeling close to blowing. Somehow, he managed to get himself to the bathroom. He lifted the seat, and hover over the bowl just in time as he threw up all he'd eaten for a year and some stomach bile. Behind him he heard a voice.

"Tsk, tsk, Shizuo, didn't I warn you? You're stomach needs to adjust."

Shizuo turned his head to see Shinra standing at the door.

"I came back to check on you and find your bed empty. At first I thought, you ran off, but then I thought, 'He probably didn't listen and ate the whole thing in only a few spoon fulls.' And I was right."

Shizuo glared. "I don't need one of your lectures. I fucked up, okay?" He spat into the toilet and stood up straight. "Do I still need that therapy?" He flushed and started walking back to his bed, but fell as his legs decided to give out on him again.

"Yes."

* * *

The next few weeks were annoying to say the least. He attended the Physical Therapy, and though he scared his therapist, he quickly regained his ability to walk normally. He had also started to be able to eat normally as well.

During his therapies, he found a white scar on his body. In the dream not much could scar him. He was almost literally indestructible. But here…he probably had a ton of scars from the accident. And he did have a few. But over time, most of them finished fading, leaving him with only the really bad ones on his torso. He thought the scars were good for him. They'd help him to remember he's truly human now.

Since he woke up, he had managed to put on a pound and was clean shaven. He was nearly himself again. The thing had was having trouble with was the mental therapy. It didn't help that his therapist didn't know him personally. So Shinra decided he'd take care of that himself once Shizuo started living with him and Celty.

During the whole month, no one came to visit but Shinra. Not even Izaya or Celty. He understood why Izaya had stopped. He'd be pretty upset as well. But was he the only one that visited him while he was in his coma? Was Izaya and Shinra his only friends? What about Celty? She was his best friend in the dream, was that wrong too? God, he hopped not.

Shizuo sighed as he waited for Shinra to finish his check up so he could finally leave.

"Ok, we're almost finished," said Shinra, writing things down on the clipboard.

"About time…" Shizuo mumbled. He was beyond annoyed at how long it was taking. Well over a month.

"Relaxed," reassured Shinra. "I just gotta finished a few things on the paper work, get you your clothes, and clock out. Then I can take you back to mine and Celty's place. Should only be a few more minutes." He continued writing. "Just be happy you're finally fit to leave."

"Yeah, yeah…" muttered Shizuo, still annoyed despite, or perhaps because, Shinra was right.

"And done!" said Shinra happily. "I'll turn this in and get you your clothes and punch out." He stood up and started towards the door. "Now mind you these aren't the same clothes as you were in when you were hit. Those were a complete mess. So I had Izaya bring you a new pair for if…WHEN you woken up." He had a sheepish look on his face. "Anyways, I'll be right back." And he walked out.

Shizuo sat on the edge of the bed and looked up at the ceiling. It had been a long month of recovery. But he was kind of scared of leaving now. Shizuo found his mind began to wonder. He wasn't super strong, Celty most likely had a head, Shinra was a legal doctor, and the Flea apparently wasn't a flea. How much else was different? Was Kasuka really a famous actor? Was Tom actually his boss? Did the Dallors really exist? What about the Slasher incidents? Shizuo found his head starting to hurt. "Too much thinking…," said Shizuo rubbing his head.

Shinra returned a few moments later carrying some clothes, including shoes, in his arms. "All set! Just change into these and we're ready to go." He handed the clothes to Shizuo. "I'll wait out side while you do that." And he left the room again.

Shizuo looked at the clothes he was given. They were a regular old pair of blue jeans and a black t-shirt, change of boxers and a pair of socks. In the dream Shizuo had always worn the bartender outfits. He rarely wore anything else, and when he did it was a special occasion.

He put the clothes on the bed and removed the hospital clothes he was wearing and put them aside. He quickly dressed and put the socks on, then the slippers that were already in the room, and walked over to the door. Opening it he saw Shinra talking to a nurse.

"…it's amazing really. I didn't think he'd make it. But I guess miracles do happen from time to time." He laughed. "Now if only he can get his realities straight…"

Shizuo walked up behind Shinra and cleared his throat. Shinra jumped a little and turned around. "Oh, all done? Ready to go see Celty?" He clapped his hands together and grinned.

* * *

It was late evening as they walked towards Shinra's home. They were halfway there when a voice spoke to him.

"Shizuo? Is that really you?" They both turned to look at the owner of the voice. It was Kyohei. "You finally recovered! That's great news."

"Uh, yeah," responded Shizuo. Well, he doesn't seem any different, he thought. Same personality so far, same clothes, even the same company. He had noticed that Kyohei's three buddies were close behind them. Two of them were chatting about something.

"Hello there, Kyohei," smiled Shinra. "He's finally been scoressed today, but he's been awake for a month now."

Kyohei looked at Shinra annoyed. "You should have told me."

"Well, you know now," smiled Shinra. Shizuo looked at him annoyed too. "I'm taking him to stay with me and Celty now. We should go, it's pretty late, and Celty will be worried. See you later!" He waved goodbye and continued on his way.

"Okay…," he sighed. "See you then…." He turned back to Shizuo and smiled. "Glad to have you back."

Shizuo just nodded and waved, and started to follow Shinra. Even though Kyohei seemed the same, Shizuo felt a little out of place and was worried about speaking to those he was friendly with. Especially those who didn't know he's just woken up from a reality altering dream. How do you really explain something like that?

Shizuo caught up with Shinra and yawned. "Are we almost there?" He was surprised at how tired he was. Didn't he just wake up from the long sleep he ever had, just a month ago, and spent a month more in bed recovering? Now his body already wanted him back to bed. Guess he still wasn't use to walking.

"Yup, don't worry, just a bit longer."

* * *

"Celty, I'm home!" called out Shinra , downing the hall of his home. "And you'll never guess whose with me!" He took off his shoes and headed down the hall into the living room. Shizuo, however, hesitated. He was nervous to met his friend again for the first time. He couldn't even remember what her face looked like.

He could hear Shinra talking loudly to Celty. Shizuo sighed and took a deep breath. He removed his own shoes and walked slowly to the living room.

"And here he is!" announced Shinra.

"Shizuo!" said a voiced he only vaguely recognized. The voice's owner rushed over to Shizuo and hugged him tightly. "It's so good to see you again! We were all so worried." He looked down and saw reddish hair. The body pulled away and smiled at him.

Shizuo just gawked at her. He knew she'd have a head, but that still didn't prepare him to actually see it. "Head…."

"Are you ok?" Celty gave him a strange look, mixed with concern.

"Oh, don't mind him, dear. He's still a bit disoriented at the moment." Explained Shinra. "He still needs time to adjust back to normal mentally."

Shizuo flushed with embarrassment at his behavior. "Sorry…" He felt like a complete idiot.

Celty smiled. "It's alright. You just awoke from a coma recently after all. That'd be rough for anyone. I should know, I got my own problems." She paused for moment. "You must be hungry. You haven't had a decent meal for over a year."

Shizuo felt more tired than anything else right now, it was quite a walk, and he still wasn't feeling use to everything physical either. "Actually, if you don't mind…I'd like to go to bed."

"Oh? Oh, that's alright." She turned to the other man. "Shinra, you have any pajamas he could borrow?"

"Afraid not." replied Shinra. "Don't have anything in his size. Well have to stop by his place tomorrow."

"That's fine, I can sleep in my clothes." Shizuo really didn't care right now. He was just happy to be out of that hospital.

"Alright then, I'll show you to your room…..do you remember where the bathroom is?" Shizuo shook his head. "Ok, I'll show you that first." Celty headed into the hall, Shizuo following. She showed him the bathroom then where he'll sleep. "If you need anything, ask. Well be happy to help. We're just next door." Shizuo nodded and she smiled and left.

Shizuo closed the door and turned to face the rolled up futon on the floor. He walked over to it and undid it. Once it was flat he crawled into it, and laid down. He had a lot of questions and answers tomorrow. But for now his eyes were heavy. He closed them and drifted to sleep.


	3. Unpleasant surprise

_"Shizuo, your ice cream is melting." Izaya said pointedly._

_Shizuo looked down at the frozen treat in his hand. It was in fact melting. "Bleh, why does it have to be so hot?" He started licking the melted parts away. He glanced at Izaya. Was he blushing? No, it was probably just the heat. "Why didn't you get one too?"_

_"You know I don't really care for sweets," replied Izaya._

_"You're weird," Shizuo ate some more of his ice cream. "You know, you're gonna get sick if you don't keep yourself cool."_

_"I'm fine."_

_"Don't say I didn't warn you."_

* * *

 

Shizuo groaned and rubbed his eyes. He had another dream. Since he awoke from his coma, he had been having random dreams, mostly about Izaya. Were these memories? Or was it him wanting to believe that Izaya wasn't a douchebag?

He sat up, looking around. That's right, he was at Shinra's now. He laid back down there thinking about things, but then his stomach grumbled loudly. Sighing, he got up out of the futon and left the room. He headed straight for the bathroom.

He entered and turned on the tap on the sink and washed his face. Grabbing the hand towel, he dried his face, glanced at it in the mirror. He looked a lot more like himself since the first time he first awoke. The scars were more faded, his face wasn't as thin, but he did need his morning shave. He'd get to that later though. He still needed a hair cut though, and a dye job as that seemed to be a thing he did in the real world as well. Though, is he wasn't strong like in the dream, why did he dye it? His temper was still a problem, maybe it was that? He'd figure that out all later. That didn't matter right now, his stomach growled again to remind him of that.

"Shut up, I'll feed you soon," he said, not that his stomach could actually hear him. Sighing again, he finished his business in the bathroom and made his way to the living room. There he saw Shinra and Celty were already awake. Celty was sitting at the dining table and Shinra was in the adjoining kitchen, making breakfast.

"Good morning, Shizuo," said Celty when she noticed him walk in. "How are you feeling?"

"A lot better." Shizuo walked over to the table and sat next to her. "I was just tired from the long walk. Now that I'm out of the hospital, I should start going for small walks, get my strength up." Funny having to say that. He still couldn't remember anything from before the coma. But now that he'd be living in a familiar area with someone to actually help him, maybe it'll start coming to him. His stomach grumbled again. "…And I'm ready for that offer to eat now."

Celty smiled. "Of course. Shinra's making eggs and toast. But we can make you something else if you want it?"

"No, that sounds fine." Anything was better than most of that hospital food. He was glad his stomach had adjusted to normal food. He didn't want to be barfing up his sweets anymore.

As he sat besides Celty, Shinra placed plates of eggs and toast in front of them. "I, uh, burnt the toast...but it should still be edible," he added quickly.

"Yeah right," Shizuo joked lightly. "Least the eggs are fine."

"Heh, yeah." Shinra cleared his throat. "After you eat, would you like to swing by your apartment and grab some clothes and whatever else you think you need?"

"Sure, but...if I've been gone for a year, how is it still my apartment? I doubt I paid that much of an advance on it."

"Izaya paid for it of course," replied Shinra, knowingly. "It's a rather small place, and doesn't cost much, so he said he didn't mind paying when the subject was brought up. Though, since we didn't know when you'd wake up, I suggested we close on it and keep your stuff safe at his place, but he insisted on doing it this way. Perhaps that was him trying to not give up hope on you?" He shrugged.

"He really did that for me?" Shinra nodded. "He really is different here..."

"Of course. You should send some time with him when he's free and get to know your friend again."

"And when exactly is he free?"

Shinra shrugged. "Hard to say. He's been keeping real busy since your accident."

Shizuo looked down at his food. Maybe he shouldn't be so quick to judge. He gave a sigh, and started eating.

* * *

 

When they all finished, they headed down to Shizuo's apartment and Shinra opened it with his spare key. "Nothings been really touched since that day, so nothing should be out of place," he said as he opened the door, letting them in. "Everything that was on you, Izaya placed back in your place, he said on an end table, I think."

Shizuo looked around. It was both odd and familiar at the same time. Everything fit in it's place, though a bit dusty. "It's like I remember."

"Good, then this is a good place to start."

Celty found where Izaya had left Shizuo's wallet, keys and phone and handed them to him. "Phone's been plugged in, so you don't need to worry about that, but you may be out of minutes. You'll have to look that over later."

He takes them and nodded. "Thanks." Shizuo flips his phone open and his heart skips a beat. His background was of him and Izaya, and they were both smiling.

Celty notices him staring and looks as well. "You were very close you know."

"..." He flips the phone shut and pockets it along with his wallet and keys. "Seems that way." He headed into his bedroom and looked for a bag to put his stuff in and started collecting clothes, while Celty helped and Shinra opened the fridge.

"Glad he at least had sense to clean this out. Don't need you getting sick with an air born fungal or anything like that." He shut the fridge's door, and went back to the living room. He dug around in the drawers, looking for something. "Ah! There it is." It was a black scrapbook. "This should help."

Shizuo and Celty finished up and returned to the living room as well. "I'm all set with things from my room." He sees the book in Shinra's hand and nods to it. "What's that?" he asked as he place the bag with his stuff down.

"It's a photo scrapbook." Shinra replied, handing it to him. "Looking through it should jog your real memories."

Shizuo flipped through the book and found a picture of his brother, causing him to smile. He ran his fingers over the image and looked up to ask, "How is Kasuka doing anyways? In my dream he was a movie star."

Shinra and Celty looked at each other. The looks on their faces made Shizuo feel sick. Celty bit her lip and returned her gaze to Shizuo. "I'm sorry Shizuo, but...He's dead."


	4. A lot to process

Shizuo felt his heart stop and the book dropped from his hands.  _Dead? He can't be…there's just no way._  "Please tell me this is a bad joke…" Tears welled up in his eyes.

"I wish it was…I'm sorry, Shizuo."

"W-when did this happen?" He started to shake.

"Three years ago."

"Th-then I knew about it…" The tears fell free. Shinra nodded. "H-how?"

Shinra push his glasses up. "It's a bit ironic, seeing its was the same way you were put into your coma. So much so it's suspicious. You'd almost think someone had it in for the Heiwajima family." Celty punched him hard in the gut. "Ow, Ce-Celty..."

"Don't put thoughts like that in his head." Celty sighed and returned her attention to Shizuo and rubbed his back gently. "I know it's hard to hear. You should never have to go though the same loss twice. It's just cruel." She shot Shinra a dirty look. "Ignore what Shinra said about having it in for your family. That's just not likely."

"Lots of things are unlikely my dear," breathed Shinra, trying to catch the wind that was knocked out of him. "Doesn't mean they can't happen." Shinra went back into the drawer and searched again. When he found what he was looking for he turned to them. He had what looked like a small stack of photos in his hands. He hesitated a bit before speaking. "If you're up to it, these are some pictures from the funeral..." He offered the photos to the blond who shakily took them.

The pictures showed, clear as day, a funeral. Kasuka's funeral. The tears that threatened his eyes streamed down his face. "It can't..."

"I'm afraid it is," Shinra said as he picked up the dropped scrapbook.

The proof was right there, but he didn't want to believe it. "He's really gone..." He shook his head and wiped the tears away. "What about the rest of my family? My parents?"

"They're fine," Celty reassured him gently. "A bit distraught at losing their children, but otherwise alright. You should call them once you're settled."

Shizuo nodded and looked at the pictures once more. "...This is more to take in than I expected."

"And that's completely understandable." Shinra spoke, placing the scrapbook on the table he collected it from. "For most people, it's difficult to find out a family member is dead. And have to find out again..." Shakes his head. "At least you know and can accept it, which will help you recover."

'Accept it'? He didn't want to accept it. But now that he thought about it, it made sense. It explained why Kasuka seemed so dead when he wasn't acting. It was because he was. But Shizuo's mind tried to have him live on, show what he could had done, what could had been.

Shizuo's eyes began to tear up again, but he wiped them away. "Anything else I should know?"

"A bit," replied Shinra. "For the most part, a lot of what you told me seems to be quite similar, but they're are differences. But first, lets sit down." He gestured to the couch.

The three walked over and sat on the seats, and Shizuo leaned back. "Alright, so lets start with getting you familiar with the differences and similarities. We'll begin with me and Celty. Tell us what your mind says about us."

Shizuo bit his lip and sighed. He was still shaken up about his brother. But he took a deep breath, sat up straight, and began. "Well, you Shinra, you're a doctor. But you do illegal work for the underground. Since I was this...strong guy, I'd go to you when I'd get hurt in a fight."

"I see. Well, differences: I'm not an illegal doctor, but a fully licensed one, but I'm sure you've figured that out by now," Shinra smirked. "If I've worked on anyone from the underground, it's not to my knowledge. But you do prefer to come to me rather than other doctors. Presumably because I know you and can handle your temper better than they can. Though lately, you've been rather mellow with a few outbursts. Probably due to the fatigue of being down and everything wearing on your psyche."

Shizuo frowned. He was probably right, whatever a 'psyche' was. Shinra continued, "How about Celty?"

"She was a Dullahan, a headless fairy from Ireland or something. It's why I acted weird when I saw her with a head." He looked at her apologetically, and addressed her for the rest. "You had a black motorcycle with no headlights and it sounded a like a horse instead of an actual motorcycle, cause it wasn't. Since you were a Dullahan, it was your...familiar or something. You worked as a courier, and often got jobs from Izaya. When you were in public, you wore a yellow helmet with cat ears and always a black body suit. You also seemed paranoid of aliens."

Shinra listened intently to Shizuo's description of Celty. He had a goofy smile on his face, and said, "Very interesting. Celty isn't paranoid of aliens, but they do creep her out. She loves motorcycles and horses, so maybe that's why they merged. I'd love to see Celty in that black bodysu-Ow!" Celty had punched him again.

Her face was slightly red and she looked irritated. "That's enough Shinra, I can speak for myself." She took a breath and moved some hair out of her face. "That's a pretty interesting take. I wonder why I changed species."

Shizuo shrugged. "Donno," he said with a slight smile. Their personalities were also most the same. That was good.

"Well, you two are good friends in this life, so maybe in the dream, since you felt inhuman, your mind changed someone you were close with into a non-human as well," Shinra attempted to explain. "Strange though, if that's true, since it also turned someone you were close to into your enemy. But when we dream, our minds only borrow from faces we've seen before. It could simply be random assignment that got pretty close to accurate."

"Maybe..." Shizuo rubbed his head. "I really don't get this stuff."

"Which is why we'll take it slowly." Shinra stood up. "Let's collect the rest of the things you need and head back to our place. Then, if you want, we can continue, or just leave it at this for today."

Shizuo nodded and he and Celty stood as well. Shizuo felt uneasy and said, "This is enough for today...I have a lot to think about."

"Of course. Take your time."


End file.
